Euthanasia Bill passes Vic parliament

THE VOLUNTARY assisted dying Bill has finally passed Parliament and is set to become law.

The Bill which has been subjected to nearly 100 hours of debate over six weeks, including three marathon all-night sessions passed the Legislative Assembly for a second time this morning.

Once it receives Royal Assent- considered a procedural formality it will become law.

Terminally ill patients are expected be able to access the doctor-assisted dying scheme from 2019.

The government agreed to a number of amendments in the Legislative Council, which ensured the Bill had the numbers to pass that house last week.

The changes included that assisted dying could only be accessed by those who were diagnosed with less than six months to live rather than a year, a greater investment in palliative care and access to psychiatric services.

The Legislative Assembly was due to ratify the amendments yesterday but Leader of Opposition Business Robert Clark moved that the Bill should be deferred indefinitely.

His motion was defeated this morning (WEDS) by nine votes and the Billâ€™s amendments were ratified.

Premier Daniel Andrews allowed a conscience vote on the Bill, but he has strongly backed the Voluntary Assisted Dying scheme.